I use both. All 12 v. I think of 1804 as $.30 and 2811 as $.25 each node. Color order for 1804 is RGB, All my 2811s have been BGR. Be sure you know what your wire colors are. Also I write with permanent marker on my 3 pin waterproof connects the node type and qty because if you are in a hurry you might grab the wrong ones although mine are all wired with 3 pin waterproof connectors and that can swapped around safely, but the color order will change so you must go back in the controller setup to make sure you have them set correctly. Colors might not match, I keep all mine separate by use type, i.e., all arches use the same type, all mini trees, each pixel tree, etc